What do I have to report under RIDDOR on a building site?
RIDDOR means telling HSE about work-related deaths, specified injuries, injuries that keep a worker off for more than 7 days, some diseases and some dangerous occurrences. The "responsible person" reports, which on site is usually the employer or whoever is in control of the site.
Who makes the report
Only the responsible person should submit a RIDDOR report. That is the employer for their own workers, some self-employed people, and whoever is in control of the premises where the incident happened.
If a self-employed subcontractor is hurt on your site, the duty usually falls on the person in control of the site, often the principal contractor. Injured people and members of the public should not submit reports.
What is reportable
The work has to be a cause of the accident, though fault does not matter. The main categories are:
- The death of any person from a work-related accident (suicides are not reportable).
- Specified injuries to a worker.
- A worker off work or unable to do their normal duties for more than 7 consecutive days, not counting the day of the accident.
- A non-worker, such as a passer-by, taken from the scene straight to hospital for treatment.
- Certain diseases, and dangerous occurrences.
The specified injuries are: fractures other than to fingers, thumbs and toes (once a doctor diagnoses them); amputations; injuries likely to cause permanent loss of sight; crush injuries to the head or torso that damage the brain or the internal organs in the chest or abdomen; burns covering more than 10% of the body or seriously damaging the eyes, lungs or other vital organs; loss of consciousness from a head injury or asphyxia; scalping needing hospital treatment; and injuries from working in an enclosed space that lead to hypothermia, heat illness, resuscitation or more than 24 hours in hospital.
An injury that keeps someone off for more than 3 days but not more than 7 is not reported to HSE. You record it, and an entry in your accident book is enough.
Dangerous occurrences on a building site
These are incidents with a high potential to cause death or serious injury. Examples relevant to construction include:
- The collapse or overturning of lifting equipment, or failure of a load-bearing part of it.
- The collapse of a substantial part of a scaffold more than 5 metres high.
- The unintended collapse of a structure where more than 5 tonnes of material falls, or of any floor or wall of a place of work.
- Any unintended collapse of falsework. HSE says all falsework failures are reportable, even if nobody is hurt.
- Contact with an uninsulated overhead electric line above 200 volts.
- An electrical short circuit or overload that causes a fire or explosion, puts the equipment out of use for over 24 hours, and had the potential to cause death.
- An uncontrolled escape of a substance hazardous to health, such as asbestos.
Occupational diseases
Employers and the self-employed report a diagnosis of one of six conditions where work is the likely cause: carpal tunnel syndrome, cramp of the hand or forearm, occupational dermatitis, hand-arm vibration syndrome, occupational asthma, and tendonitis or tenosynovitis of the hand or forearm. Each has its own work link: hand-arm vibration syndrome, for example, needs regular use of vibrating or percussive tools. Certain cancers and biological agents have separate HSE guidance.
Report only once you have a doctor's confirmed diagnosis. For an employee, that diagnosis must be given to the employer in writing.
Deadlines
- Deaths, specified injuries, non-worker hospital cases and dangerous occurrences: notify without delay, by the quickest practicable means. HSE also says the report must be received within 10 days of the incident.
- More than 7 days off work: report within 15 days of the accident. Weekends and rest days count towards the 7 days.
- Occupational disease: report as soon as you have the diagnosis.
How to report, and what to keep
Use the online form that matches the incident: injury, dangerous occurrence or disease. For a death or a specified injury to a worker you can phone HSE instead on 0345 300 9923. Everything else goes online.
You must keep a record of every reportable injury, disease and dangerous occurrence, plus injuries that keep someone off for more than 3 days. If you do not keep a copy of the online form (you can save a PDF from the confirmation screen), record the date and method of reporting, the date, time and place, the personal details of those involved, and a short description. The regulations require each entry to be kept for at least three years. Diseases need a separate record, as the accident book does not cover them.
Sources
- HSE: Types of reportable incidents
- HSE: Specified injuries to workers
- HSE: Dangerous occurrences
- HSE: Reportable occupational diseases
- HSE: When do I need to report an incident?
- HSE: Who should report under RIDDOR
- HSE: How to make a RIDDOR report
- HSE: What records do I need to keep?
- HSE: Examples of reportable incidents
- legislation.gov.uk: RIDDOR 2013